Arthur Mullen's blog

Pub’n Prime

Pub’n Prime is now one of my favorite all time restaurants in Wisconsin. As a matter of fact, I recommended Pub’n Prime to Ron Faiola for his upcoming second volume on Wisconsin Supper Clubs. Pub’n Prime does so many things right I don’t even know where to start.

The service was spotless, crushing the challenge of most of the guests leaving the Tiki Bar (yes, it’s a prime rib and tiki bar kind of place) and moving into the main dining room at the same time. The servers use hand written checks, including all the abbreviations, and pick up hot food when their server number silently lights up on an elevator floor display kind of sign. I love old school systems like that!

The menu is blissfully minimal: focused on one thing (prime rib) and doing it right. First we received fresh baked rolls and WIsconsin butter, as well as a nontraditional relish tray of black olives and crackers with a richly delicious cheesy spread. The prime rib arrived deliciously seasoned in its own jus and something strange happened to me, and I kind of blacked out. Next thing I know, EVERYTHING is gone, all the meat, even the fat I would usually trim off. It was outstanding.

Gruff male hunters, at the table behind ours, were intoxicated by the $2 margarita Monday special and berated the owner, saying the price for prime rib was different on their website. The owner calmly replied, in a low frequency tone I could only just make out, that the out of date menu was from a third party website, as the restaurant does not even have one. I was concerned these butter and beef-fed Wisconsin jerks would snap her neck.

I had nothing to worry about: she was a pro. Scientists may as well have discovered that the low frequency tone of her voice had the same effect on the lizard brains of these two hog-men as the umami-packed jus of the prime rib. The signature peak in the brain waves was identical. For her, these 300LB silverbacks was NBD. There would be more than enough prime rib to sate all comers. Top notch service and killer prime rib (in my blackout I didn’t even take a photo!) won us over, and the silver fox owner won these old boys over too. Next time I’m in town, Pub’n Prime is where I’m eating!